Labour leader Andrew Little, Prime Minister John Key and Sports Minister Jonathan Coleman with the All Blacks during the RWC 2015 squad announcement. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Labour leader Andrew Little, Prime Minister John Key and Sports Minister Jonathan Coleman with the All Blacks during the RWC 2015 squad announcement. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Opinion by John Drinnan
John Drinnan is the Media writer for the New Zealand Herald.
The NZ Rugby Union is standing by an exclusive deal with Sky TV to broadcast the Sunday announcement of the Rugby World Cup squad, that has caused comment online.
Sports journalists have also questioned whether the All Blacks have become more politicised.
John Drinnan asked NZ Rugby Union general managerof public affairs Nick Brown about the event, which forced TVNZ and TV3 to broadcast from outside the venue and that has been criticised for politicising the All Blacks and making bad TV.
Q. What were the arrangements for media coverage of the squad naming at the Beehive? A. All media cameras and reporters had access to the full event and could report on their channels as it happened. TV3 ran a dedicated programme 6.30pm to 7pm. The reading of the team's names could only be broadcast live on SKY, Radio Sport (owned by the publisher of NZ Herald NZME. It was also live streamed on allblacks.com.
Q. The Rugby Union has said the actual event was exclusive to Sky TV. Were you required to do this because of your contractual commitments to Sky TV? A. No, but the arrangement reflects that SKY TV and Radio Sport are our contracted broadcast partners. All other media could report on the naming of the team as it happened. They just could not broadcast or live stream the naming.
Q. Did the Rugby Union request the Beehive venue as part of its sponsorship arrangement with New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. A. No, it was not connected.
Q. After the event, do you believe the occasion reflected well on the All Blacks and its relationship with fans? A. Yes. We look to a variety of venues to announce teams. The last RWC squad in 2011 was unveiled at a rugby club. We announced the Investec Rugby Championship squad at an Auckland high school in July. Given the team were in Wellington, we felt that Parliament offered something different this time and represented all of New Zealand and their support for the team. We followed that up today by sending the All Blacks around New Zealand to various schools, retirement villages, small towns and other communities which is something we do every year.
Q. Are you happy with the quality of the broadcast? A. We were happy with SKY's broadcast and the extended coverage and live crosses that a number of media broadcast. The event generated extensive coverage in media and huge talkability across social media so we were very pleased that the announcement reached fans across New Zealand and around the world as it happened.
